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...Identity and Belonging prompts:
There are costs to the individual in belonging to a group.
In the modern world, there are obstacles to maintaining personal independence.
Exposure to conflicting values can weaken a person's sense of self.
The way in which a person matures is influenced by the actions of others.
Does belonging always mean compromise?
If you don't belong does that necessarily mean that you're isolated?
We only ever belong because we believe we do.
How do we know who we are?
You can't expect others to understand you, if you don't understand yourself.
We must break away from the past in order to embrace the future.
We should not feel threatened by those who are different.
As we journey through life, identity and belonging must be constantly renegotiated.
The first group we belong to, the family, has more influence than any other group on forming our identity.
In what ways might people be damaged by the families and groups of which they are a part?
Physical appearance and body image contribute significantly to an individual's sense of self.
We cannot achieve a strong sense of identity unless we also have a strong sense of belonging to something outside ourselves.
Sometimes our sense of identity is stifled by the groups to which we belong.
It is sometimes hard to know what other people are really...

...﻿Belonging is achieved by many paths.
Belonging is a fundamental desire inherent within humans. However, there are various ways to attain a sense of belonging as it can be gained through the forging of relationships to people and places or through the understanding and sharing of similar cultural and religious identities. In Tate Taylor‘s film “The Help”, Peter Skrzynecki’s poem “Feliks Skrzynecki” and “Migrant Hostel”, regardless of whether people attempt to discover belonging under the biased American social context in 1963 or under immigration boom in Post War Australia, the paths lead toward belonging are significantly explored through the actions undertaken by the characters either to maintain one’s belonging or to establish a new sense of belonging.
Undoubtedly, a powerful sense of belonging can be attained through a person’s connection to places and the strong human relationships. In Feliks Skrzynecki, Feliks’s desire to maintain his belonging to his Polish heritage is achieved through his connection with his garden as he “loved his garden like an only child”, the simile compares the garden with his child which emphases his familial and intimate relationship with his garden and his home. The garden is a symbol of his Polish identity/autonomy, consequently this strong affiliation with his Polish culture...

...convention. This need for others’ validation, especially during the teenage years, is explored in the American TV show Glee, directed by Ryan Murphy, in which a bunch of misfit high school students each attempt to find their true selves. From the first day of high school, and even earlier, children are labelled as geeks, footballers, divas and cheerleaders, yet the membership of the school’s show choir – which includes students from every different stereotype – allows each one to feel not only open to their true identity but proud to finally understand that they do have something significant to contribute to the world around them. This group enables these “misfits” to retain their quirks, eccentricities and beliefs while simultaneously feeling appreciated and worthwhile through belonging to this musical group and expressing themselves together.
In modern day society we are afforded the opportunity, on occasion, to explore different stereotypes; to try on multiple identities to see which one fits. However, in comparison, the religious members of the Amish community are not allowed this same trial or path of discovery, as portrayed in Peter Weir’s film Witness. The notion of expected of assumed conformity in Western society is taken further to enforced, compulsory conformity in the Amish community, where you are told your place in society, as Eli does to both Rachael and Samuel, and have no choice but to follow it. We see the...

...others, these attitudes are significantly influenced by the interaction within the family and immediate environment. Through them we learn out true identity and who we belong to, in contrast when involved in foreign or broader community we feel pressured to change our identity in order to be accepted.
In modern world, it’s difficult to find a way to belong to a certain group without changing our identity, you are often bombarded with messages of what we should be, as a result we change the real us and became who they want us to became. Our peers and friendship groups reflect our personalities and sometimes even our insecurities.
Language is the major means we have of representing to ourselves and to others, it determines who we are, people who speak same language are perceived they belong together, being foreigner to a new country without speaking the language can often be difficult, Many Australians have stereotypes about Asian people and overall migrants, they assume you are stupid or illiterate idiot, take the case of Simon tong in Alice Pung’s Growing up Asian in Australia, he was an attentive and conscientious student who was on top of his work, who loved reading and fantasied about growing up to be a writer, but that quickly changed when he migrated to Australia, culture shock had a huge effect on Simon’s sense of self identity and his feeling of wellbeing he suffered a lot of bullying and harassment being the...

...The groups we reject tell us as much about ourselves as those to which we choose to belong
Do I Belong?
By Danielle Arnold –Levy
“Who am I?” is a question often repeated by teenagers, though they may not voice it out loud or use precisely those words. One of the biggest challenges that adolescents face during the transition between childhood and adulthood is this struggle with their own sense of identity. For one thing, it seems to constantly shift: they may act one way with a particular group of peers and completely different with another.
Ironically, the opinions of friends and acquaintances become very important at this stage in teenagers lives, whilst they are rejecting their parents’ advice however this may be apparent before teenage years and it tends to dictate kids' taste in clothing, the way they speak, how they react to things, who they hang out with, what they believe in, and their choice in musical genres. Others' opinions often dictate how kids feel about themselves, and how they regulate their self-esteem. Here is another area where their sense of identity can become clouded, because they start comparing themselves to everyone else. They may worry about why they’re developing earlier or later than their peers in certain areas. Because puberty and adolescence are such confusing transitions, kids can feel a strong urge to check their own progress alongside that of another, or to stick with those people who, for all outward...

...Good relationship can enhance our sense of identity. sharing special relationships with people is one of the most rewarding and elevating moments of our lives. We categorize ourselves in terms of other people and groups. Evolution has taught us that it is beneficial to live in tribes, where we can share out the work of daily survival. When asked about yourself, you may well describe yourself in terms of your work and family relationship. Although we defined ourselves by our membership of groups, we also define ourselves by comparison and contrast with others. I cannot imagine the world without my family they mean everything to me I don’t want to lose them I love them too much. I am very grateful to have them as a family.
Our family are the first group to which we belong to, the family has more influence than any other group on forming our identity. Families provide love, protection and the opportunity for us to find out who we are through our relationship with them and others. not all families provide opportunities for personal growth. The expectations of parents and siblings may drive us to want to do better having a positive effect on us or may drive a wedge between parents or siblings and children.
Friendships are vital in adolescence as we develop a sense of being individuals. Families continue to be important but we seek ourselves through the relationships we form with our peers. We learn about acceptance and difference. As we get older...

...Feedback is considered by many education experts to be one of the most important elements of assessment for student learning as well as being a crucial influence on student learning (Brown, Harris &amp; Harnett, 2012). Feedback, when applied effectively, can result in an increase in learner satisfaction and persistence as well as contributing to students taking on and applying more productive learning strategies. Feedback is a powerful strategy for teachers of all subjects and grade levels to use and has been endorsed worldwide. Feedback can be defined as 'the information provided by an agent, for example; a teacher or parent, regarding aspects of one's performance or understanding' (Brown, Harris &amp; Harnett, 2012). However, when feedback is provided to students inappropriately it can lead to negative effects. This is why, as teachers, we need to have a full understanding of what constitutes effective quality feedback as well as developing an understanding of how to apply feedback in an appropriate manner for our students as differentiated learners (Clark, 2012). Feedback is consistent with the Assessment for learning strategy which focuses assessment on in-course improvement-orientated interactions between instructors and learners rather than end-of-course testing and examinations (Brown, Harris &amp; Harnett, 2012). Assessment for learning acknowledges that individual students learn in idiosyncratic ways and is designed to give information to teachers on how to...

...‘Our sense of self is very vulnerable to external pressures’
In everyday life, humans are surrounded with pressures that can influence the formation of their identity. External pressures such as the environment we live in, the culture we belong to and the presence of other people, are often uncontrollable and can have a crucial impact on our sense of self. This idea is explored in great depth in Ray Lawler’s classic Australian play, “The Summer of the Seventeenth Doll”, where it is reflected how these basic external pressures help to define different characters. It is also demonstrated, however, that embedded within individuals are internal demands, to which our sense of self can be equally vulnerable to.
Our identity can be derived in great part from our environments. Whether it be our home, school, work or sporting club, each of these external aspects can have a larger impact on our sense of self than we realise. Demonstrated by Lawler, Emma’s Carlton boarding house in the play provides his central characters with an environment to which helps form part of their identities. The ‘lay-off’ has become an annual routine and thus is the reason why Olive fails to leave the past behind her and ‘come out of [her] day-dream long enough to take a grown-up look at the lay-off.’ The tropics of North Queensland are home to Roo and Barney for seven months of the year, where they spend their days ‘sloggin it out under the sun’ working as...